“I told him, ‘You have to do this,’ ” [Charlie] Rose recalled in an interview on Saturday. ” ‘No one has your credibility, and people want to hear what you have to say.’ ”
Buffett agreed to do it, and Rose flew to San Diego, where Buffett would be on Wednesday. The hourlong interview on Wednesday night was vintage Warren Buffett: calm, plain-spoken and wry.
He called the current crisis an economic Pearl Harbor, requiring immediate action. Its biggest single cause, he explained, was the real estate bubble. “Three hundred million Americans, their lending institutions, their government, their media, all believed that house prices were going to go up consistently,” he said. “Lending was done based on it, and everybody did a lot of foolish things.”
As far back as 2003, Buffett had warned that the complex securities at the center of today’s troubles– once so profitable, but now toxic– were “financial weapons of mass destruction.” These securities were engineered by the math quants on Wall Street, and in the interview Buffett expressed his disdain: “Beware of geeks bearing formulas.”
The link doesn’t seem to be right. The excerpt doesn’t from the article linked to.
“Lending was done based on it, and everybody did a lot of foolish things.”
That is simply not true. Some of us did NOT take home equity loans to buy…stuff. Some of us kept our credit cards within bounds. Some of us put 20% down on our homes and got fixed rate mortgages.
Now, WE are having to pay for those who did those foolish things. Our money is being used to reward THEM. I resent it and I will remember it this November. Putting my children and grandchildren in debt to pay for the CEOs with their golden parachutes…I resent it!
The lord liberated us from resentment, I hope.
Buffett, alas, has revealed himself to be a librul! he supports Hussein Obama!
Buffett’s always been a Democratic supporter. No surprise.
I looked up “math quant” and found this Wikipedia article.
Merriam-Webster
Resent: : to feel or express annoyance or ill will at
John, you are right. I will follow what the Scriptures say:
The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. Psalm 34:17
And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? Luke 18:7
Look! The wages you failed to pay the workmen who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord Almighty. James 5:4
The rich in this country have stolen from the poor. We should cry out to heaven for justice and deliverance from our oppressors. This “bailout” has put my children in bondage as wage slaves to the government. The innocent accross the land and around the world are being enslaved to support the wealthy thieves. Oh, Lord, hear our cry and deliver us from the hands of wicked men.
Arise, O LORD! Deliver me, O my God! Strike all my enemies on the jaw; break the teeth of the wicked. Psalm 3:7
Yet I am poor and needy; come quickly to me, O God. You are my help and my deliverer; O LORD, do not delay. Psalm 70:5
Deliver me, O my God, from the hand of the wicked, from the grasp of evil and cruel men. Psalm 71:4
Deliver me and rescue me from the hands of foreigners whose mouths are full of lies, whose right hands are deceitful. Psalm 144:11
Do not say, “I’ll pay you back for this wrong!” Wait for the LORD, and he will deliver you. Proverbs 20:22
He who oppresses the poor to increase his wealth and he who gives gifts to the rich—both come to poverty. Proverbs 22:6
“Buffett’s always been a Democratic supporter. No surprise”
Let’s not let the reflexive ad hominem attack go unhominated.
Now wait, Irenaeus. That wasn’t ad hominem. He’s a Democrat. I wouldn’t have thought you’d consider that an attack. 🙂
Katherine, your original post was indeed an ad hominem attack. You failed to deal with the ideas presented, and instead mentioned a characteristic you do not like about Mr. Buffett. I could care less about is politics, the man understands the financial markets and how they work.
Back to the point of the article: Warren Buffett has indeed been warning the world about the out-of-control ‘derivatives’ market and calling for more transparent accounting practices for several decades now. This is nothing new on his part, and it is admirable. Too bad for all of us little guys that the ‘regulation is bad’ crowd (led by Phil Gramm, arch-GOP and financial guru for Sen. McCain until very lately) didn’t listen to the Sage of Omaha. You tell ’em, Warren!
” I could care less about [h]is politics”
Grammatical ignorance, or freudian slip?
“Too bad for all of us little guys that the ‘regulation is bad’ crowd (led by Phil Gramm…) didn’t listen to the Sage of Omaha”
—Little Cabbage [#9]
As a U.S. senator in 1992, Phil Gramm talked a nice line about how the government did not stand behind Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. He then offered amendments that reinforced the market perception that the government informally backed those firms’ liabilities.
I don’t think it is rumor that Buffett lives with his girlfriend in California, while his wife lives elswhere. So, why are we listening to him? I am not.
bl
” In truth, Susie moved out shortly after the couple’s 25th wedding
anniversary. She even set her husband up with other women, including
Astrid Menks, a waitress at the French Cafe who ended up moving in and
still lives with Buffett. While Susie and Warren remain close, Astrid is his
daily companion, though Susie still accompanies him on trips to New York
and California and sits on Berkshire’s board. Susie and Astrid are friends;
they send presents to relatives from “Warren, Susie and Astrid.”
http://lee.org/poly/buffet.html
[blockquote] That is simply not true. Some of us did NOT take home equity loans to buy…stuff. Some of us kept our credit cards within bounds. Some of us put 20% down on our homes and got fixed rate mortgages. [/blockquote]
For the past several years, I’d listen to those mortgage ads on the radio drawing people in with zero down payment, teaser rates that would adjust upward within months (and every few months after that), and think “you’d have to be an idiot not to be going for a fixed-rate mortgage these days.” I know there are exceptions to this, but they prove the rule. It was a cinch that rates, and payments, would be headed upward.
Were these folks conned? Maybe, but they were conned by the oldest and surest way: Making them think they were in on the screw.
“I don’t think it is rumor that Buffett lives with his girlfriend in California, while his wife lives elswhere. So, why are we listening to him? I am not” —Bob Lee [#12]
Bob: If that’s true, it stinks. But I’m curious: would you ever listen to Rudolph Giuliani?
Re: My “ad hominem.” Nonsense! Read Wilkins/Gawain’s #3, which immediately precedes my remark. He made an odd comment which I suppose he meant to be satirical to say that Buffett supports Obama. I pointed out quite mildly that Buffett usually does support Democrats. I have no idea whatever what you people are upset about.
“I pointed out quite mildly that Buffett usually does support Democrats” —Katherine [#4]
You appeared to be responding to the article itself and asserting that Buffett supported the bailout because he usually supports Democrats.
If that’s what it looked like, Irenaeus, then I suppose I can understand a small part of this uproar. I was responding to the immediately preceding rather foolish comment, not the article, and should have said so.
Nerves do seem to be rather on edge. I usually ignore that particular commenter and will return to that policy.
“Nerves do seem to be rather on edge”
Yes, indeed.
Bob Lee, so, given McCain’s marital history, he is much more… authoritative? Interesting….
Watch those stones, or logs, whatever!
#19, Yes McCain’s marital history means we should not listen to him, correct? And I’m certain that Bob Lee ignored ANYthing Mr. Reagan said, after all, he was divorced, shacked up with Nancy for awhile, then married her….and had a lousy relationship with his kids, too, including the adopted one!